Research by North Carolina State University scientists, in conjunction with scientists from the Netherlands and BioResource International, an NC State spin-off biotechnology company, has shown that, under proper conditions, an enzyme can fully degrade the prion – or protein particle – believed to be responsible for mad cow disease and other related animal and human diseases.
These transmissible prions – believed to be the cause of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), the technical name fo
By revealing the architecture of an essential enzyme in a parasite, Dartmouth researchers are helping address a public health issue.
Researchers in the laboratory of Amy Anderson, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, have unveiled the structure of an enzyme called dihydrofolate reductase-thymidylate synthase, also known as DHFR-TS, from a waterborne parasite called Cryptosporidium hominis. Knowing the chemical structure of the enzyme will help researchers design highly targeted drugs to
A University of Florida-led team of astronomers may have discovered the brightest star yet observed in the universe, a fiery behemoth that could be as much as much as seven times brighter than the current record holder
But don’t expect to find the star – which is at least 5 million times brighter than the sun – in the night sky. Dust particles between Earth and the star block out all of its visible light. Whereas the sun is located only 8.3 light minutes from Earth, the bright star is
Weizmann Institute scientists have succeeded in reversing the metastatic properties of colon cancer cells, in vitro. The findings, published in the Nov. 24 issue of The Journal of Cell Biology, uncover a key process involved in the metastasis of colon cancer cells and raise hopes that target-specific drugs might be devised to prevent, or reverse, the invasive behavior of metastatic colon cancer cells. Colon cancer is the second most prevalent type of cancer in men and third in women in the Western wo
Microscopic Mojave Desert plants growing on the underside of translucent quartz pebbles can endure both chilly and near-boiling temperatures, scavenge nitrogen from the air, and utilize the equivalent of nighttime moonlight levels for photosynthesis, a new study reports. The plants, which receive enough light through the pebbles to support photosynthesis, could offer a model for how plants first colonized land, as well as how they might have evolved on Mars, said the scientists who performed the stud
New method tracking single atoms may lead to improved drug design
Until now, scientists studying the workings of ultra-microscopic forms have had to rely on the scientific equivalents of still photos, something like trying to fathom driving by looking at a photograph of a car. Now, Prof. Irit Sagi and her team of the Structural Biology Department are using new and innovative methods developed at the Weizmann Institute to see real-time “video clips” of enzyme molecules at work. The res
New study suggests El Niño-related fires may be significant source of greenhouse gases
In 1997-98, while California was ravaged by rainfall in one of the strongest El Niños of the last century, several other regions of the Earth suffered severe droughts, which led to large-scale fires.
James Randerson, assistant professor of Earth system science at UC Irvine, and colleagues report that by combining satellite data and measurements of atmospheric gases, they have quantified fo
In a study of adolescents across 15 countries, adolescents in the United States had the highest prevalence of overweight, according to an article in the January issue of The Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Overweight and obesity have increased worldwide among children, adolescents and adults, according to the article. The World Health Organization has designated obesity as one of the most important public health threats because of the signific
Until now, astronomers have been nearly blind when looking back in time to survey an era when most stars in the Universe were expected to have formed. This critical cosmological blind-spot has been removed by a team, including a UK scientist, using the Frederick C. Gillett Gemini North Telescope, showing that many galaxies in the young Universe are not behaving as expected some 8-11 billion years ago.
The surprise: these galaxies appear to be more fully formed and mature than expected at th
A traveling robotic geologist from NASA has landed on Mars and returned stunning images of the area around its landing site in Gusev Crater.
Mars Exploration Rover Spirit successfully sent a radio signal after the spacecraft had bounced and rolled for several minutes following its initial impact at 11:35 p.m. EST (8:35 p.m. Pacific Standard Time) on January 3.
“This is a big night for NASA,” said NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe. “We’re back. I am very, very proud of this
Approximately one to three percent of children are affected by obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). This condition can cause growth problems and delay development. Symptoms include snoring, difficulty breathing when asleep, and sleep disturbance. Sometimes parents notice the child becomes completely obstructed despite struggling to breathe. Once diagnosed, OSA in children can usually be treated by removing the tonsils and adenoids. The diagnosis of this condition usually requires a detailed evaluation and
Research performed by scientists at the School of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, University of Surrey and the Health Protection Agency (Porton Down, Salisbury) provides hope for developing a new meningitis vaccine that will protect children against all groups of meningococcus.
Published in the journal, Infection and Immunity, the research found that meningococcus is responsible for epidemics of meningitis worldwide that kills thousands of children each year. Vaccines are available for th
Viruses can both cause and prevent autoimmune disease. In order to understand this dualism, Matthias von Herrath and colleagues from the La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology in California exposed prediabetic mice to viral infections. In the January 2 issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation the authors report that infection with lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) during the prediabetic period completely abolished the diabetic process in two distinct mouse models.
This
Patients with persistently abnormal liver function tests but no serologic evidence of liver disease may nevertheless have hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, according to a study published in the January 1 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, available online now.
Such occult (meaning hidden or concealed) infection is not supposed to occur–the conventional wisdom is that the virus leaves markers in serum or plasma, including specific antibodies and viral RNA, which have been the ser
Corn mutant reveals gene coordinating major steps in meiosis
Berkeley – For all its importance in sexual reproduction, the process of creating eggs and sperm, called meiosis, is still poorly understood.
How the chromosomes in germ cells pair off, trade a few genes and split to give each gamete half a normal complement of genes is so complicated that researchers have had a hard time making sense of the mechanisms involved.
A team of biologists at the University of C
Researchers at Northeastern University today announced that they have demonstrated that, contrary to previous research, swinging the limbs during the act of running requires a significant fraction of energy. In contrast to the established hypothesis, which asserted that force produced when the foot is on the ground (stance-phase) is the only determinant of the energy cost of running, Northeastern researchers observed that a significant fraction energy was used to fuel muscles that move the limb while
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